The standard theoretical account of transnational advocacy networks (TANs) is one of principled non-state actors remaking world politics by upsetting conventional notions of power in the international system. Relying on persuasion and framing instead of disruption and protest, these global networks of activists, NGOs, scientists and technical experts transform states and their preferences by developing, promoting, and monitoring compliance with norms. At the core of this literature is an implicit assumption of fixity in the moral commitments of TANs that galvanizes collective identity, sustains transnational mobilization, and ultimately allows them to leverage actors much more powerful than themselves. By contrast, this dissertation develops a theory of “advocacy drift” based on a selection of transnational issue campaigns in the People’s Republic of China. It argues that in state-dominated contexts with highly developed institutions of social control, immovable national interests sometimes exert transformative effects on the principled goals of activist campaigns or see the TAN incorporated into the state itself. This finding not only suggests that authoritarian governments influence advocacy networks just as advocates can influence those governments...

AbstractOBJECTIVEAnalyzing beliefs and actions of nurses in exercising patient advocacy in a hospital context.METHODA quantitative cross-sectional exploratory and descriptive study, conducted with 153 nurses from two hospitals in southern Brazil, one public and one philanthropic, by applying Protective Nursing Advocacy Scale - Brazilian version. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and analysis of variance.RESULTSNurses believe they are advocating for patients in their workplaces, and agree that they should advocate, especially when vulnerable patients need their protection. Personal values and professional skills have been identified as major sources of support for the practice of advocacy.CONCLUSIONNurses do not disagree nor agree that advocating for patients in their working environments can bring them negative consequences. It is necessary to recognize how the characteristics of public and private institutions have helped or not helped in exercising patient advocacy by nurses.

Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) were first commercially produced in the 1920’s, became popular for their valuable heat transferring properties and were mostly utilized as an additive in oil filled electrical equipment to reduce fire risk. After peak production was reached in the 1950’s and PCBs became a valuable additive in paints, adhesives, plastics, caulking and more, health and environmental concerns arose when PCBs were found widespread in the environment. The first PCB regulations emerged from the Food and Drug Administration after food sources were found to contain PCBs. Congress then moved to ban PCBs in 1976, and charged the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to develop regulations implementing the ban on the already widely distributed chemical.
The U.S. PCB policy debate now spans 31 years starting with EPA’s first promulgation of PCB regulations in 1979. Since then 31 rulemakings have altered the regulatory framework with 679 commenters participating in the policy debate via written comments submitted to EPA. As recently as 2010 EPA announced plans to again revise significant portions of PCB regulations found in 40 CFR 761. In 2015, both EPA and Congress announced separate plans to take action impacting PCB policy. EPA announced...

American perceptions of sharks are changing. There has been a shift over several decades from the view of sharks as dangerous predators to animals in need of conservation. Simultaneously, shark conservation policies in the United States have developed. Advocacy organizations have been instrumental in educating and eliciting the interest of the American public about sharks and the need for conservation. Despite the shift in American perceptions of sharks, these animals still receive a lot of negative attention in the media. For this reason advocacy organizations need to select photographs of sharks to present to the American public with care. Using photographs from the nonprofit organization Shark Savers, I conducted interviews and surveys to examine the differences in preferences for photographs of sharks between Duke University Marine Lab students and the general public of Beaufort, North Carolina. The purpose of this study is to identify shark photograph preferences in order to inform advocacy groups for shark conservation campaigns. I investigated four categories of photographs: sharks with divers, photographs with multiple sharks, the location of the shark in the ocean, and dead sharks. The majority of the Duke University Marine Lab students did not have a preference for a diver in a photograph or had a preference for no diver. Most of the Beaufort participants did prefer to see a diver. The majority of the Marine Lab students and the Beaufort participants did not have a preference for the number of sharks in a photograph. Most participants in both sample groups had a preference for the location of shark: seeing a shark near the ocean floor. The majority of all participants stated it would be more effective for them to see a paring of live and dead sharks in an advocacy campaign...

Special interest groups are trying to change language in the Magnuson-Steven Fisheries
Conservation and Management Act (MSFCMA) to allow fishery management councils to create and
allocate processor quota (PQ). This limited entry tool is a companion to Individual Fishing Quotas (IFQs)
which allocate harvesting rights to individual fishermen or vessel owners. Authorizing PQ would allow
councils to give seafood companies exclusive buying rights and would require fishermen to sell their
catch to the limited number of buyers holding PQ shares. A grassroots advocacy campaign opposing PQ
prevented the 107th Congress from including controversial PQ language in MSFCMA reauthorization.
Employing the Cape Cod Commercial Hook Fishermen’s Association (CCCHFA) as a case study, I will
analyze how strategies of coalition building, constituent mobilization, and media contact were effectively
applied in this campaign. Likewise, strategies to activate members of Congress played a prominent role
in the effort. The CCCHFA led 225 visits to Congressional offices, trained more than 17 commercial
fishermen in advocacy techniques, generated press coverage on both coasts, and produced a hard-hitting
advocacy video that was distributed to all 535 members of Congress. To accomplish future goals...

Robert E. Lyons; Environmental justice advocacy from community based organizations
remains a necessary tool to protect nature and people. Public horticulture institutions
are equipped with scientific experts to support community capacity, aid justice, and
augment social relevancy. This thesis research examined the perceptions of
horticulture institutions and other cultural institutions as it relates community,
environmental issues, and environmental advocacy. Targeted surveys and case study
interviews were conducted with leadership in public horticulture and related fields to
gain insight.
The findings illuminated a gap between the levels of acknowledged
capacity by public horticulture institutions to address environmental issues and the
level of advocacy actions taken by those same institutions to educate, empower, or
influence, the larger community, policy or patrons. The case studies demonstrated
effective ways to engage a variety of audiences and impact environmental policy
consistent with the mission and vision of the organizations. Subsequently,
recommendations were made for public horticulture institutions to potentially engage
their patrons and communities in ways that protect people, protect nature and
strengthen relationships.; M.S.; University of Delaware...

John Courtright; The purpose of this study was to examine the determinants of advocacy among
parents of children with autism. Existing research related to parental involvement in the
autism community has been largely qualitative and/or without a theoretical basis. This
study utilized the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) to predict and explain parents???
intentions to communicate with school staff and to attend autism advocacy event based
on their attitudes, social norms, and perceived behavioral control. Respondents included
86 parents of children enrolled in the Delaware Autism Program (DAP), a highly
specialized program dedicated exclusively to educating those on the autism spectrum.
The survey was available between March 25, 2013 and June 1, 2013; 19 parents returned
paper surveys while 67 completed an online version. A multiple regression analysis
revealed that past behavior, subjective norms and perceived behavioral control predicted
communication and attendance intentions. Attitude was an additional predictor of
intention to attend an event. A paired t-test revealed that parents are more likely to
communicate about their child than they are to attend an event to benefit the larger autism
community. Pearson correlations revealed additional relationships...

In the increasingly competitive not-for-profit world, public gardens need to justify their contribution to society. Public gardens need to become more active in current socio-environmental issues to both demonstrate a sense of social responsibility and fulfill a need in contemporary society. The public will look increasingly toward public gardens for information and guidance concerning plant-related issues.
This thesis examines advocacy in public gardens, focusing on the issue of tropical rain forest conservation. It argues the need for more widespread advocacy and explores the potential role public gardens can play.
The first chapter addresses the trend toward advocacy in public gardens. It discusses the concept of advocacy, noting the increase in advocacy at related institutions. Advocacy is not a traditional role for public gardens. The reasons that more public gardens have yet to assume a leadership role in advocating tropical rain forest conservation can be grouped into the following categories: traditional values/mission, leadership, individuals' attitudes, questions of responsibility, conflicting priorities, need for global perspective, isolation, controversy/partisanship.
The few public gardens with leading advocacy roles in tropical rain forest conservation share three common traits: 1) determined...

Generally speaking, Advocacy's objective is to claim a right. 1988 Brazilian Federal Constitution has recognized health as a constitutional human right which has initiated public debates about sanitary advocacy. This works seeks to bring out the politics obstacles to the practice of sanitary advocacy, starting with an analysis of a specific case - the dispute for freedom to carry on scientific research with embryonic stem cells, regulated by 5th article of Biosecurity Act, which has been contested to the Brazilian Supreme Court (by an Ação Direta de Inconstitucionalidade - ADI 3.510). The methodology used was a case study (used to explain the problem and the right claimed, to make a diagnosis of the situation, to present the strategy of advocacy and to identify political obstacles) and the inductive method (to compose a guide-book to identify political obstacles to sanitary advocacy in general).; Advocacia lato sensu tem por objeto a reivindicação de um direito. No Brasil, a Constituição Federal de 1988 reconheceu a saúde como um direito fundamental, abrindo espaço para se falar em advocacia em saúde. Este trabalho busca desvelar os obstáculos políticos ao exercício da advocacia sanitária em geral, a partir da análise de um caso específico - a disputa pela liberdade de pesquisa com células-tronco embrionárias...

Advocacy is a concept still under construction and its meaning necessarily varies in accordance with the social and political context of each nation. As different social groups become involved in advocacy work this concepth as acquired new contents and meanings. It also has been gaining greater relevance for feminist efforts to influence political debates and policy agendas. Engaging in advocacy requires greater knowledge of the political context conceptual deepening and the development of specific skills of negotiation, planning and communication strategies. On its path from North to South America, the advocacy concept also has been undergoing a complex and continuous process of political translation. Feminist advocacy in Latin America is a clearly political action that entails re-discussing the role of the State and of civil society within the process of democratization and, at the same time, requires re-thinking strategies of feminist interventions in the promotion of political, economic and cultural transformations.; Advocacy é um conceito ainda em construção cujo significado preciso varia conforme o contexto social e político de cada nação. Esse conceito bem adquirindo novos conteúdos e significados à medida que diferentes grupos sociais vão se envolvendo no trabalho de incidência política. Vem igualmente adquirindo maior relevância para a ação desses atores sociais para influir no debate público e nas agendas políticas. Fazer advocacy exige maior conhecimento do contexto político...

This article discusses the role of evidence-based media advocacy in the promotion of tobacco control policies. Evidence is a driving force for campaigns seeking to implement a tobacco control policy. An effective campaign is based in evidence that demonstrates why a policy should be implemented, and what the potential benefits are. Media advocacy is the process of disseminating information through the communications media where the aim is to effect action, such as a change of policy, or to alter the public's view of an issue. Discussion focuses on: 1) the importance of, and methods for, collecting and communicating evidence and information to make it clear and usable for legislators, the media, and the public; and 2) the role of earned and paid media in advancing tobacco control issues. The discussion is made within the context of a specific advocacy example; in this case the 2010 campaign to increase the tobacco tax in Mexico.

Breast cancer is a significant health burden worldwide. In the United States, the Breast Cancer Advocacy Movement has increased awareness, enhanced dialogue, and provided significant funding opportunities that previously did not exist. Various advocacy programs are beginning to emerge in developing countries in response to the increasing impact breast cancer is having in these regions of the world. This paper discusses the influence of the Breast Cancer Advocacy Movement in the US and proposes a format for working in conjunction with medical experts, political leaders and patient advocates to stimulate discussion and encourage sustainable outcomes in breast cancer internationally.

The effective implementation of the Promotion of Equality and Prevention of Unfair Discrimination Act4 of 2000 (PEPUDA) and the fulfilment of the South African state's obligations in terms of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) are dependent on two fundamental tools, advocacy and litigation. This article discusses the outcome of three cases in the Equality Courts and how these cases promote accessibility and access to justice for persons with disabilities. The authors then consider the impact of CREATE, a KwaZulu-Natal NGO's advocacy initiatives to promote the rights of persons with disabilities and the utilisation of the Equality Court to realise those rights. Participants of ten workshops in KwaZulu-Natal identified three barriers to access to justice in accessing the Equality Courts. Firstly, some Equality Courts are geographically (and financially) inaccessible. Secondly, the negative and insensitive attitudes of front-line workers impact on the ability of persons with disabilities to bring equality claims to and access the services of the Equality Court. These barriers constitute discrimination and flout articles 9 and 13 of the CRPD, which require the provision of support for persons with disabilities to access the justice system and the promotion of accessibility to the physical environment...

This article discusses the role of evidence-based media advocacy in the promotion of tobacco control policies. Evidence is a driving force for campaigns seeking to implement a tobacco control policy. An effective campaign is based in evidence that demonstrates why a policy should be implemented, and what the potential benefits are. Media advocacy is the process of disseminating information through the communications media where the aim is to effect action, such as a change of policy, or to alter the public's view of an issue. Discussion focuses on: 1) the importance of, and methods for, collecting and communicating evidence and information to make it clear and usable for legislators, the media, and the public; and 2) the role of earned and paid media in advancing tobacco control issues. The discussion is made within the context of a specific advocacy example; in this case the 2010 campaign to increase the tobacco tax in Mexico.

Patient advocacy is based on the premise that people have the right to make their own choices about their health care. Personal advocacy is centred on the experiential expertise of the individual affected by the condition, whereas group advocacy is grounded on patient-centred strategies and actions. The first patient advocacy groups for arthritis were set up over 20 years ago in the USA and have subsequently spread to many other countries. This paper discusses the growth and impact of personal advocacy as well as recent developments in group advocacy in the Asia-Pacific region, Europe, and North America, in terms of arthritis awareness, research, corporate partnerships, and the Bone and Joint Decade global initiative.